Digital Science, a technology company serving stakeholders across the research ecosystem, is pleased to announce that the University of Sussex has successfully integrated Figshare and Symplectic Elements from Digital Science’s flagship products to create a seamless, interoperable research information and data management solution.
The University of Sussex (Sussex) is a leading research-intensive university in the South of England. Sussex was the first of the new wave of UK universities founded in the 1960s, receiving its Royal Charter in 1961.
Sussex has been using Symplectic Elements as its Current Research Information System (CRIS) since 2020, initially integrated with EPrints as its institutional repository (called Sussex Research Online, or SRO). In 2022, Sussex took the decision to migrate SRO from EPrints to Figshare in order to create a more joined-up solution to support its Open Access needs. Moving to a full Figshare institutional repository supports the streamlining of IT Services and also enables repository staff teams to be more flexible as they work with Figshare alone, as opposed to two varying systems for papers and data.
SRO is a key part of the University’s research strategy to make research outputs available globally. The repository contains electronic theses and research publications including articles, conference proceedings, working papers and some research monographs. With this new integration, Sussex will be able to benefit from the close synergy between the Figshare and Symplectic client services teams beneath their shared parent organisation, Digital Science.
Amy Waldron, Digital Development Manager at the University of Sussex says: “Digital Science provided tremendous expertise at every stage of the process, supporting our skilled in-house team in managing complex repository metadata and combining this with robust project management processes, making this a successful and rewarding project to work on.
“The deeply integrated environment we now have will greatly enhance our ability to manage the range of repository activities and strengthen our position in preparing for any future research assessment exercises.”
Jonathan Breeze, MD ResearchWorkflows at Digital Science, says: “We’re delighted to announce the integration of Figshare and Symplectic Elements at the University of Sussex, enabling the creation of a seamless research information and data management solution.”
“Through this integration Sussex is leading the way in bringing together the combined strengths of two of Digital Science’s products, affording Sussex greater opportunities to further enhance the experience of researchers from all research disciplines.”
